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Japanese wrestling. As the "sport of emperors' it is performed in shrines and has acquired many Shinto features, such as the shide on wrestlers" loincloths, the salt sprinkled prior to a contest, and the shimenawa used to construct the arena. A curious festival called nakizumo (crying sumo) held at the Ikiko jinja, Tochigi in late September features two sumo wrestlers who rock babies in their arms, the winner being the one whose baby cries first (sic) A Popular Dictionary of Shinto (Brian Bocking) |
